


A Testament to Forever

by cecilantro



Series: 100 Days Of Ficlets [39]
Category: Critical Role (Web Series)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-06
Updated: 2018-04-06
Packaged: 2019-04-19 06:10:44
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,520
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14231028
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cecilantro/pseuds/cecilantro
Summary: (Spoilers for 9x13!)“You and I did interior decorating together, Caleb.” Molly’s mischievous grin is laced with affection, “That’s how you know it’s forever.”





	A Testament to Forever

**Author's Note:**

> The mental image of Caleb and Molly putting the skull on top of the dodecafuckoff is honestly my life motivation rn

Molly excuses himself from the table after Nott comes up from the cellar, pats her shoulder as he passes, perhaps a little too hard but he’s trying, he’s really trying. Trust isn’t something easy to come by in any way, even the pseudo-trust sense that must be lent to people like the Nein, and Nott isn’t doing the best job of being part of the team. Nevertheless, he and Fjord had made a promise, that they would try to keep Caleb safe, and that’s what he intends to do. And, incidentally, why he slips in the opposite direction to the toilets of the place and out of the door, around the back, into the cellar.   
Caleb looks up as he enters, expecting Nott, surprised to see Mollymauk. The dodecahedron thing is in the corner, again, the skull of the skeleton placed back on top but having obviously been moved from the previous night, and Caleb is pacing back and forth. He pauses only briefly to consider Molly, and then gets right back to it.   
“You alright?” is the first thing Molly asks, he doesn’t mean to, it just spills out. He has issues with Caleb, yes, and when he’s not in the same room he can be angry and seethe as much as he likes. But damn his heart, he catches sight of a wisp of messy ginger hair, is shocked by the sky-blue of his eyes, and he melts all over again. It’s very annoying. Caleb’s eyes stay on his feet and the particular way he moves one in front of the other.   
“ _ Ja _ .” is his one-word reply, Molly frowns and steps into his path as he turns about and starts his pacing line again. Caleb bumps into his chest, finally breaking the spell and forcing him to stop, properly, and look up.   
“We’ve had issues with you and Nott lying to us, Caleb, don’t do it to my face.” He leans in a little closer, “I know.”   
The intimidation tactic would not, generally, work with Caleb. He’s known Molly too well, too soft to think he’d ever hurt him. Well, hurt him seriously. He’s sure Mollymauk isn’t opposed to a little stabbing between friends to get what he wants, but Caleb has spent time with Beau and isn’t afraid of a little pain, not any more.   
It works today, Caleb is so strung up and he misses being asleep, he misses the odd warmth and comfort that comes from the eggy-looking thing, it’s such a stark contrast to… everything else.   
Caleb crumples.   
“Oh, shit.” Molly falls to his knees beside him, a crumpled paper ball of dirty, bloodstained wizard, he tries to smooth him out. He runs his hands over anywhere he can touch, Caleb’s shoulders, his back, his head, he runs his fingers through Caleb’s hair, the occasional shushing noise.   
He’s not crying, not shaking, not… broken, as far as Molly can see, just curled and crumpled on the floor, still, staring into nothing and murmuring something over and over, probably in Zemnian, Molly heaves a sigh and winds his arms around Caleb’s shoulders and pulls and shifts until he’s cross-legged and Caleb’s head is on the softest part of his thigh. He strokes, rhythmically, through the hair just above Caleb’s ear.   
“Come on, Caleb.” He says, there’s no irritation behind his words, only warmth, “Nott’ll be down soon and I told Jester that I had to piss.”   
“You can go back.” Caleb murmurs in Common, almost unintelligible, Molly buries his fingers in the hair at the back of his head.   
“I’m going  _ nowhere _ . We’re a team, Caleb, and I care about you. I am  _ not _ leaving you like this.”   
Caleb, slowly, draws himself up, away, sitting, the shock cold where he’d been laid a few moments before is icy.   
“Nott told you about our conversation last night?”   
“She, she did.” Caleb confirms, “And whilst I, I, I don’t necessarily  _ agree _ with your- their, their sentiments.” He levels his eyes at Molly, “I do not wish to leave, just yet. I am willing to, to do, whatever you, whatever they need.”   
Molly frowns, he wants, so badly, to be angry or upset or perturbed but his heart is too soft, he reaches out for Caleb and pauses through the stretch to give Caleb the choice.   
Caleb unfolds and pushes forward until Molly’s chin settles on his shoulder, arms loose around his back. Caleb’s hands fold together at the back of Molly’s neck and presses, they sit, quietly and calmly and just… breathe.   
There’s a scuffle from the doorway, Molly and Caleb have just enough time to jump apart before Nott enters and startles at the sight of Mollymauk,   
“Oh! You’re here!” and turns her attention to Caleb, “Fjord is back, they asked me to come and get you. I, I told them, I can just use Message but-”   
“It’s fine.” Caleb soothes, “I will be up in just a moment, Mollymauk and I have some private business to attend to.”   
“Okay!” Nott turns and leaves, a hint of a backwards glance, Caleb calls after her,   
“Nott?”   
“Yes, Caleb?” She turns to him again,   
“Please, do not mention Mollymauk to the others.”   
Nott nods hard and disappears, the door clicks closed, and Molly gives a sigh of relief,   
“Beau’d punch me out if she thought I was favouring you.” He smiles wryly, turns, and Caleb is there suddenly and taking Molly’s face in his hands and  _ kissing him _ , there’s a scrape of teeth in the quick movement, Molly takes a hard, surprised breath through his nose and Caleb pulls back.   
“I, I’m sorry-” He steps away, Molly steps up to him, one hand to the back of his head, one to his waist, and kisses him. Caleb loops his arms up and around to the back of Molly’s neck, doesn’t let go, even when they draw apart. Molly rests his forehead to Caleb’s as they catch their breath.   
“Don’t fuck with us again.” He says, it’s a low threat, “Because I can’t stand to lose you, Caleb. And if you fuck with us, Beau is going to, and I’m almost quoting here, beat you so fucking hard that your ancestors in the next plane won’t recognise you.”   
Caleb gives a breathy laugh, he’s not nervous, even though he knows Beau is completely serious.    
“What context was this in?”   
“If you got her arrested.” Molly shifts to press his face to the angle of Caleb’s jaw, he feels him smirk there, “Nott was very sarcastic, you would have been so proud.”   
“I, I am, I am so proud of her.” Molly feels Caleb tilt his head to rest better against his own, “She is far more powerful than she seems, I can, I can learn a lot, from her.”   
Molly kisses the soft part of Caleb’s throat and pauses to feel the beat of his pulse under his touch, the arms around his neck tighten.    
“This. Forever.” Caleb whispers, it seems more to the air of the room than to Molly, “ _ Für immer. _ ” And again in Zemnian, so originally, Molly figures, partially for his benefit, he drifts the hand at the back of Caleb’s neck to his hairline instead, there’s so much he wants in this moment, he takes only the crumb of it and shifts to press one more kiss to Caleb’s lips, draws it out, there’s the teeth again but more purposeful this time, and then he’s drawing away and slipping one hand down Caleb’s arm to take his hand, gentle, laces his fingers with Caleb’s.   
“I plan on it.” He says, honest, open, Caleb smiles just a little bit. Squeezes.   
“You should go up first, I, I will meet you as you leave.” He leans in to kiss Molly’s cheek, “Tell Nott to Message me.”   
“That’s a plan.” Molly squeezes back, once and pulls away to make for the door. “Hey, Caleb?”   
“Hm?” Caleb is over to the skull, and Molly chuckles, one hand on the doorknob,   
“I was going to tell you that I love you, and then leave, because it’s dramatic. But I can’t resist, yesterday, with the skull?”   
Caleb turns to look at him, head tilted in question,   
“You and I did interior decorating together, Caleb.” Molly’s mischievous grin is laced with affection, “That’s how you know it’s forever.”   
Caleb gives an actual, audible laugh, and Molly’s grin only grows,   
“Okay, okay, that’s the note I’ll leave on. Love you.” He pulls the door open, Caleb chuckles and shakes his head, affectionately,   
“I love you too, Molly, go on.”   
He clicks the door closed behind him and slips in to the bar quietly, when he sits, Nott eyes him impishly.   
“That was one hell of a shit.”   
“Oh, it was great.” Molly rests his chin in his hand, smiling knowingly, “Do you want the details?”   
Beau shoves his shoulder and the mood darkens again. They go back to being a band of criminals.   
In the cellar, Caleb lifts the skull from the dodecawhatever-the-fuck and squints at it, fighting a smirk.   
“A testament to forever.” he tells the skull, flatly, and smiles to himself.


End file.
